from going -- hike, from -- going over the fiscal cliff, still in the final hours. >> the house and senate convened for rare sunday sessions in hoping of bridging major impasses. >> conversations and discussions continue and we remain hopeful that'll get a breakthrough. >> we'll pass a minimalist bill so that we won't go over the cliff and then i think we have to go from there. >> on nbc's meet the press, president obama made a final pitch for his plan to preserve bush era tax cuts for welt healthy americans. >> a mijor sticking point continues to be -- major annual sticking point, the threshold has waiverd from $250,000 to as high as millionion dollar. the country doesn't have a tax revenue problem. t has a spending problem. john boehner issued a statement saying republicans have made every effort to make the balanced agreement that the president promised the american people. we've been reasonable and respondent. the president is the 1 who's never been able to get to yes. >> what i ran on and what the american people elected me to do was to put fourth a balanced approach. >> despite the o